{
    "id": 1006965,
    "title": "How to Make Sweet Tea",
    "slug": "how-to-make-sweet-tea",
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    "url": "https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/",
    "modified": "2026-05-23T15:42:00+01:00",
    "excerpt": "Southern sweet tea is strong black tea sweetened hot and served very cold: brew double strength, dissolve sugar warm, chill fast. The sugar is an owned choice.",
    "content_text": "Sweet tea, in short: Southern sweet tea is strong black tea sweetened hot and served very cold: brew double strength, dissolve sugar warm, chill fast.\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for How to Make Sweet Tea. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/\nSweet tea is the classic American South iced drink: strong black tea, sweetened while hot so the sugar dissolves fully, then chilled and served over ice. It is genuinely delicious and genuinely sweet, and a clear recipe gives you both, how to make a proper one, and a candid look at exactly how much sugar that traditionally means so you can decide your own level.\nLast reviewed by the teas.co.uk team in May 2026.\nWhat you need\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for What you need , How to Make Sweet Tea. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/For about a litre: 6 to 8 black teabags (or 3 to 4 tablespoons loose black tea), a litre of water, and, traditionally, anywhere from a half to a full cup of sugar, that is the usual range a classic recipe uses, plus ice and optional lemon. The tea base should be brewed strong because the ice will dilute it.\nHow to make it, step by step\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for How to make it, step by step , How to Make Sweet Tea. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/Boil the water, remove from heat, add the tea and steep 4 to 6 minutes for a strong base (a short pinch of bicarbonate of soda is a traditional trick to reduce bitterness from the long, strong steep). Remove the tea. While the tea is still hot, stir in the sugar until fully dissolved, doing this hot is the whole technique, sugar will not dissolve properly in cold tea. Top up with cold water if needed, cool, refrigerate, and serve over plenty of ice with lemon.\nHow to make it genuinely good\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for How to make it genuinely good , How to Make Sweet Tea. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/Genuinely good sweet tea is about a strong, smooth, not stewed base and full sugar dissolution. Use a decent robust black tea, do not over steep into harshness (the bicarb trick or a slightly shorter steep helps), and chill it properly so it is bracingly cold over lots of ice. Fresh lemon lifts it. A \"simple syrup\" (sugar pre dissolved in water) lets you sweeten to taste glass by glass instead of committing the whole jug.\nThe honest noteThe honest note is the sugar one this whole wiki insists on: traditional sweet tea is, by design, a high sugar drink, a full sugar recipe can rival a soft drink, and the iced, refreshing format makes it slip down fast. That is fine as an occasional treat made knowingly, the sensible move is simply to know the number and that it is entirely yours to set. You can make genuinely lovely sweet tea at a fraction of the classic sugar, or use a syrup so each glass is your choice; the tea and the ritual stay exactly the same, only the sugar is dialled to where you actually want it.\nSweet tea, at a glance\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for How to Make Sweet Tea. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/\nElementShort ruleWhat it isStrong black tea, sweetened while hot, served very coldBrew strongDouble strength; ice will dilute it heavilySweeten warmSugar dissolves in hot tea, not iced; syrup works tooChill fastOver plenty of ice or quickly in the fridgeClear noteIt is a sweet drink by design; the sugar is a choice, own it\nReference noted\n\nEFSA: Scientific opinion on dietary reference values for water\n\nFrom the curatorteas \u00b7 Start cheap, stay cheap until something stops you. Most rich teas reward patience, not budget. \nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for How to Make Sweet Tea. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-to-make-sweet-tea/\nMore from the tea wiki\n\nHow to make iced tea\nHow much sugar in tea\nHow to make tea properly\nBlack tea\nHow to make bubble tea\nHow to make milk tea",
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